Tutor Me
by LivingInADream95
Summary: Jay is at risk of having to repeat his senior year, something which he is not willing to let happen. Because of this, he finds himself needing to do something he never thought he would. He has to ask Emma for help. What happens when Emma agrees to tutor Jay? Will their dislike of each other be too much to overcome or will the close proximity pull them together?
1. Chapter 1

**AN:** This is my first Degrassi story and I know I'm a little late to the game, but I recently started re-watching the series and I couldn't shake the idea for a story, so I decided to start one. I know the characters may seem a little OOC at times, but I wouldn't be able to write the story without altering them a little bit. Although, in my opinion, I haven't necessarily changed them, I'm just shedding light on a side of them that we don't really get to see in the show. Anyways, that's all for my rant. Hope you enjoy the story!

 **Chapter 1**

The bell rings, signaling the end of yet another torturous school day. Jay quickly shoves his work into his backpack and heads toward his locker, wanting to get out of this prison as soon as humanly possible.

When he got to his locker, he quickly shoved what he didn't need into his locker and tossed his homework into his bag. He surveyed his locker, ensuring he had everything he needed, which wasn't an easy task, considering the mess that was his locker. When he was satisfied that he had everything he needed, he slammed the locker shut and headed for the parking lot.

He reached his baby in record time, giving her orange body a quick pat of affection. He loved this car. He had busted his ass to make enough money to buy it and because of this, he treated the car as though it was a living, breathing entity, rather than a hunk of metal designed to get him from point A to point B.

As he got into the car and put the keys into the ignition, he heard the passenger door open and close.

"Hey, easy on the door!" He said angrily, turning to see who was determined to take his baby's door of its hinges.

Alex. He should have known. Who else would be brave enough to not only invite themselves for a ride, but also slam his door? Sometimes Jay wondered how he had ever dated her. Don't get him wrong, she was one of his best friends, basically family, but the woman was infuriating and had no respect for his baby.

"Oh get over yourself," Alex replied gruffly. "It's just a car."

Jay glared at her.

"Okay, okay... Whatever. Just chill out, dude."

"What do you want Alex?" He asked, making no effort to conceal his annoyance.

He wasn't in the mood for her snide remarks right now. He was too focused on the fact that he was most likely going to fail his classes and have to repeat his senior year. Jay couldn't bear the thought of having to spend another year at Degrassi. The people, the drama, the schoolwork, he couldn't do another year of it. Just thinking about it made him want to punch something, or someone.

"Why so snippy? Is it your time of the month?" Alex said with a smirk.

"Look, Alex, I'm really not in the mood for your sarcasm right now, so could you just tell me what it is you want."

"Jeez, what's your problem today, man?"

"Nothing. Just sick of this place," he said shortly.

He felt bad for snapping at her, so he had resorted to short, to the point sentences in an effort to avoid shouting at her. It wasn't her fault he sucked at school.

"Then let's get out of here. We can hangout at The Dot for a while, my treat," she replied thoughtfully.

Jay reached out his hand and felt her forehead, which earned him a glare.

"You feeling okay? Since when do you offer to pay for anyone?" He asked with a smirk.

"Shut up. You're clearly having a shitty day, and I'm just trying to be a good friend. Now start the car and drive."

"Whatever you say, boss."

The drive to The Dot is a quiet one. When they arrived, they picked a table near the back, away from the crowd. Jay wasn't a fan of this place. It wasn't the place itself he had a problem with. It was all of the people from Degrassi. This was where everyone came after school. It was bad enough he had to spend eight hours a day with these people; he felt no need to extend his time around them.

"So," Alex began calmly, "what happened today that's got you so grumpy?"

"Kwan is a tyrant, that's what. At this rate, I'm going to be stuck at this place for the rest of my life!" he all but shouted, his anger at the situation getting the best of him.

Spinner was headed to their table to take their order when he heard Jay's outburst. He knew that feeling all too well.

"Kwan is the devil," Spinner interjected.

"Eavesdrop much?" Alex asked snidely.

"Whoa, calm down, I was just agreeing with him," Spinner replied, holding his hands up in surrender.

"What do you know about Kwan being awful anyways?" Jay asked. "Didn't you get a B on the last test?"

"Yeah, but only because I got a tutor."

"A tutor?" Jay asked skeptically.

"Yeah, you know… had a someone with a brain help me study?" Spinner replied sarcastically.

"I know what a tutor is. I'm dumb, but I'm not that dumb."

"You never know," Alex said with a smirk.

Jay glared at her. "When I want your opinion, Alex, I'll ask"

"Well, anyways, all I was trying to say was that having Emma tutor me totally saved my ass with Kwan. I know she's the last person you probably want help from, but you should give her a chance. She's not as bad as people think… So, can I take your order? My boss is my new Kwan," Spinner said, shuddering for dramatic effect.

Jay couldn't help but chuckle at that. The world was full of Kwans.

"I dunno, man. Emma Nelson? Besides, even if I did want her to tutor me, which I'm not saying I do, somehow I doubt Greenpeace would be willing to help me," Jay replied. "As for the order, we'll just have fries."

"Think about it and let me know. If you change your mind, I'll put in a good word for you with Emma."

"Yeah, I'll get back to you."

Spinner nodded and left to put their order in.

Jay couldn't believe he was actually considering asking Emma Nelson for help. What had the world come to? He let his head fall into his hands, slowly sinking his way toward the table. Alex just laughed and rolled her eyes. Jay wished for a black hole to drop down and suck him into it, but no such luck.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Jay didn't stay at The Dot for very long, just long enough to finish his fries and get a lecture from Alex about how he needs to get a tutor like Spinner suggested. The last thing Jay wanted right now was to be getting lectured by his friends. Since when was Lexi so concerned with how he did in school anyways?

Jay drove home to his apartment, music blaring. He was grateful for the temporary distraction from his problems. Unfortunately, the ride to his apartment was a short one, so his relief didn't last long. He pulled into the parking lot, grabbed his stuff from the back seat, and headed inside.

After the crappy day Jay had just had, the last thing he felt like doing was homework. He wanted to go to The Ravine to drink and maybe fool around with some girl in the van, but he knew that if he wanted any hope of leaving Degrassi, he had to stay in and try to figure out what the hell his teachers were talking about. The Ravine would just have to wait.

Jay entered his apartment, tossing his stuff onto the ground beside the couch. He headed toward the small kitchen area to grab himself a pop. If he couldn't get drunk, he may as well get a sugar buzz. He flopped onto the couch, flipped on the TV for background noise, and got out his homework, laying it across the coffee table in front of him. He glared at the papers and books, wishing they didn't exist and that he didn't need to worry about high school. As much as he hated it, he knew high school was a necessary evil if he ever hoped to get a decent job and make something of himself.

With that thought in mind, he grabbed his English binder and started going over his notes, hoping to at least grasp some small points about the book they were reading. He didn't understand why they were forced to read Shakespeare. The man made no sense. They may as well be making him study Japanese. _What does this guy even know about my life anyways? He's just some dead poet,_ Jay thought moodily

He spent the next hour staring at the pages before tossing the binder at the wall in frustration. _This is hopeless_ , he thought. _None of this makes any sense. What the hell is Kwan even talking about? Damnit. I'm going to have to ask Greenpeace for help after all._

Jay groaned at the thought of having to ask Emma for help. It was bad enough knowing that he needed help, but to need it from her of all people... He sunk back into the couch, running his hands through his hair in frustration. _How did my life get so screwed up?_ He wondered.

After sitting like this for ten minutes, wallowing in self-pity, Jay finally decided he had to do something. Begrudgingly, he picked up his phone and dialed Spinner's number.

"Hello," Spinner greeted upon answering his phone

"Hey, it's Jay… About what you said today…" he begun hesitantly

"I knew you'd call!" Spinner said with excitement.

"Well at least someone finds this situation entertaining," he replied gruffly.

"Man, it's not that bad… Emma is a miracle woman!"

"Huh, we'll see about that," Jay said with a smirk only he could see.

"So, you want me to put a good word in for you?"

"Somehow I doubt anyone will be able to convince her to help me, I mean, I basically tortured her our entire time at Degrassi, but if you think you can convince her, then yeah. I hate to admit it, but I need the help."

"I know what that's like. Yeah man, I'll put in a good word. She's helping me study for a math test tomorrow, so I'll mention it to her then and get back to you."

"Thanks man. I appreciate it."

"Anytime. I gotta go though, still on the clock. See you tomorrow."

"Later."

Jay hung up the phone and tossed it onto the couch. _Well, may as well grab a beer,_ he thought. _It's not like I'm getting anywhere tonight._ He sat on the couch watching some show on his little TV and drinking his beer. He must have dozed off because next thing he knew it was 9 o'clock.

Jay yawned, stretched, and stood up to go toss his beer can in the trash. _Hmm, maybe if I start recycling, Greenpeace will consider helping me,_ he thought with a smirk. _Yeah right!_

He contemplated what to do now. He wasn't tired enough to go to sleep, but there wasn't much point in going to The Ravine, not if he wanted to get any sleep before school. As much as he would rather sleep-in and skip class, Jay knew he had to stop doing that, that's part of what got him into this mess in the first place.

He decided to do some of his other homework. He grabbed his science stuff and got to work. Science was his only decent subject. Something about blowing stuff up and lighting things on fire was rather appealing to him. He found himself able to actually focus in class and somewhat understand what was going on, simply because he found the experiments interesting. He was getting a C+ in that class, which for him was a pretty good mark, but he'd still like it to be higher.

He read over his notes to refresh his memory before looking at the homework questions. He was able to finish with science in half an hour. Now it was time for media immersion, which was another impossible course in his eyes. Jay groaned as he opened his notes.

He flipped through the pages, trying to make sense of what he had written, but it was no use. The more he looked at them, the more frustrated he became. He felt like an idiot for not understanding this stuff. He wished he had paid more attention in school all these years, rather than wasting time with his idiot friends. Maybe then he wouldn't need to be begging Emma for help.

Jay looked at the time on his phone. 11 o'clock. _Wow, who knew I could focus on media immersion for so long. It's been what, an hour and a half? That must be some sort of record for me._ Jay was actually kind of proud of himself. Sure, he had no idea what any of it meant, but at least he had tried. That was a step in the right direction.

He decided he had had enough homework for one night, so he packed up the notes and books back into his bag then headed to his room. He stripped down to his boxers, pulled down the covers, and made his way into his bed. He let out a contented sigh, feeling his body relax into the mattress. He hadn't realized how tired he was until now. Before long, Jay was fast asleep.


End file.
